TechCrunch’s 2025 Startup Battlefield 200 is pretty much here, and the pressure is higher than ever. With a $100,000 line, the top 20 early stage startups know they have to offer the best on the Disrupt stage in Moscon West, San Francisco on October 27-29. Our VC judges, on the other hand, bring in sharp questions, deep experiences, and discerning eyes, distinguishing the promising from the truly exceptional.
Founders can gain invaluable insights from these veteran VCs into winning pitches and what makes a sustainable startup. Investors can discover pitch-enabled, impactful startups to add to their pipeline. Everyone else can witness a fierce startup showdown. Here, the Equity-Free Award and the top 20 TechCrunch-Vetted startups pitch in the coveted cup.
Sign up now to save up to $444 with your pass, or take your team or friends with you, and save up to 30% with your bundle pass. Don’t miss this nail biting World Series live performance from the pitch competition.
Meet the next batch of Battlefield 200 judges
Today we look forward to introducing the fourth wave of judges taking part in the competition. There’s one more obvious left. Keep an eye out for the Confusion Agenda. See who the last five judges will be.
Allison Baum Gates, General Partner, Semperbilence Venture Capital
Allison Baum Gates is the general partner of Sempervirens, a venture fund investing in healthcare, fintech and enterprise Saas. So far, she has raised hundreds of millions of dollars from LPS in the US, Europe and Asia, deploying capital to more than 70 companies, including nine unicorns and 24 exits, and holding 10 board positions.
Gates has been featured in major publications such as the Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes and TechCrunch, and has taught hundreds of business school students. She is a lecturer in the management team at Stanford GSB and is the author of Breaking Into Venture (McGraw-Hill, 2023), a comprehensive guide to navigating the VC industry. Her second book, Beyond the Pitch: The Psychology of Rashing VC Funding, will be released next year. She holds a honoured bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University and is skilled in three languages.
Katelin Holloway, founding partner, 776
Katelin Holloway is the founding partner of Alexis Ohanian’s early stage venture capital firm 776. Holloway Backs Transformative Startups over Diberse Sectors is a veteran investor with over 20 years of operational experience in companies such as Pixar and Reddit. She invests in solutions that expand human potential and resilience, promote health, explore new frontiers, promote sustainability, promote creativity and enrich the human experience.
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October 27th-29th, 2025
In 776, Holloway combines her operational expertise and deep commitment to supporting founders as she navigates early challenges and scales her vision. She is dedicated to restructuring venture capital by empowering intergenerational entrepreneurs to tackle humanity’s greatest challenges while providing exceptional returns.
Miloni Madang Pressler, Partners, In-Facility Venture Partners (IVP)
Miloni Madhan is passionate about partnering with businesses that innovate with purpose. Rather than innovating for innovation, we are companies that solve real problems. As a general partner at Institutional Venture Partners (IVP), she focuses on supporting founders building the products and solutions people really need. She is looking for companies that can fill gaps in fragmented ecosystems, automate obsolete processes, and provide a data-driven platform that can transform industry. Madhan is driven by the belief that these companies and their influences endure well beyond a single investment, and it is the pursuit of lasting change that promotes her commitment and intentionality in any partnership.
Sarah Itelson, partner, Axel
Sara Ittelson joined Accel in 2022, focusing on early consumers, businesses and AI companies. Prior to Axel, he was head of Fair’s strategic partnerships and previously worked in Uber’s global business development. Itterson is a native of Chico, California and graduated from Northwestern and Stanford University.
Rinki Sethi, founding partner, Lockstep
Rinki Sethi is Chief Security Director of Upwind Security and LockStep’s founding partners. She previously served as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer for Twitter, Bill and Rubrik, and held senior security leadership roles for Palo Alto Networks, IBM, eBay and Intuit. Sethi brings deep expertise to both the private sector and the corporate committee, shaping security strategies at the highest level.
Now is the time to save on confusion passes
Don’t miss the Startup Pitch Competition of the Year and get a live performance. With energy, high stakes and pointy questions, the Startup Battlefield 200 was the launchpad for an early-stage startup. Brands like Discord, Trello and Mint have taken a big break on the confusion stage. Sign up here to participate before ticket prices go up.
